Improvement in corn and seed-planters



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DANIEL D. FRANKLIN, Or FLORA, ILLINOIS, AssIeNoR 'rop HIM seLr AND JOHNs. UNDERWOOD, or SAME PLACE.

Letters Patent No.'92,951, dated July 27, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN CORN .ANDv SEED-PLANTERS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom 'it may concern.-

the peculiar Aconstruction and arrangementof devices i described andclaimed in the following specification, and represented in the drawingsreferred to.

In the accompanying drawingsv Figure l is au elevation of one side ofaiseed-planter, with my improvements. A

Figure 2 is a plan or top view, withoutthe seat D3. In these drawings- Ais the front and Al the rear bar, connected by the side bars B B and theside rails B1 B1,`and middle bars B2 BZ, the whole of them beingfastened together,

to make a strong frame, asv shown in iig.' 2, to which the otherpartsare fastened or connected.

The draught-pole B3 is hingedf'bctween the -ends of `the bars Bit-owhich pole the animals may be harnessed in some convenient manner, todraw the machine.

rlhis frame is mounted on two carrying-wheels, C 0,'

which turn on axles Olin the side bars, and rails B B1 and the collars(l2, on the axles,may be put either side of the wheels, so as to rim onthe rows planted at dif Y bars D1, which are arranged to vibrate on apin passing through the middle bars B2.

The standard D2 is fastened to the rear of the frame, to support one endof the seat D, which is hung to vibrate freely in the standard, and itsforward end is supported by standards in the bars D, so thata part ofthe weight of the driver is carried by the wheel D.

All th'e wheels are grooved to press the earth in on each side of thefurrow, on to the seed planted, and the scrapers E E are arranged toclear the earth from the grooves in the wheels.

The furrowingteeth,'three in number, are Imade in the form shown in thedrawing at F F- F, and their forward 'ends are provided with a series ofholes,` to fasten' them forward or backward on the bar E', arr( nged infront of the bar A, which bar E1 is provided with a series of holes, toset the teeth further apart or nearer together, to make the rows plantedthe width desired.

The rear ends of the teeth F are divided and spread to receive the lowerends of the seed-tubes F1, and the rear ends of the teeth are connectedby eye-bolts F? through the bar G, to the bar'G', whichis connected -bylinks H to the levers H1, hung on the rod I, which issupported bystandards I I from the bars B2, so

that the driver, by putting his feet on the rear ends of the levers H1,can raise the furrowing-teeth, when he desires to turn the machine, orat other times.

The bar Gis made, in three pieces, with slots and bolts H2, and the barG' is provided with holes, so that the bolts F2 may be set further apartor nearer toge.=,tl1er,` to adjust thev teetha proper distance apart.

The bar G is made so thin as to be flexible, and the spiral springs F3are arranged op the bolts' F2, to permit the teeth to rise when theystrike a stone or other obstruction, and pass over it.

The bar J is fastened to the top of the frame, and the seed-boxes J arearranged on it, as shown in the drawings, to receive the seed,'and thetraversing-bar' K is fitted to traverse in the bottom of, theseseedboxes, and is moved to drop the seed by the hand-levers K1 Kl, whichvibrate on pins in the. brackets It?, fastened to the bar J, when movedby the driver or dropper, at a proper time, to drop the secd.

The bar K has two holes in it, in every seed-box', and is partiallycoveredby a grid, or rack, L, made of wires arranged Iso near togetherthat the kernels of corn will not pass between th'em, and the holes inthe bar are alternately moved out om under the grid',` when the cornfalls into them, and then they are moved under the grid, and overthe-hole in the bar J, through which the corn-.Or seed falls into theexible tube L1, which conducts it into the tube F1, from which it fallsto the ground, behind the furrowing-tooth F, and the grooved wheel Ccomes along and crowds the earthiu, and covers the corn.

I also arrange a brush, L2, overl the grid L,Which" may be used, whendesired, for corn or smaller seeds, either with or without the grid L.(See Iig. 1, where the end of the seed-box is left oli' to show theinterior.)

I put a-pin through the seed-tube F1, and lhang the piece of bentsheet-metal M over it in the tube, so. part of the seed will pass downeach side, and scatter 4the seed in the hilhwhen desired.

I put the tubes F1 down through the metal plate N, which extends forwardover the tooth F, and is pro'- vided with a series of holes, by. whichit is fastened to the fore end of the tooth, so the seed-tube can bead-vjusted forwardeor back, as desired.

To plant a rhomboidal-shaped field with parallel ob- Iique check-rows,to avoid short rows at the sidesof the field, set thel planting-tube, orboth the plantingtube and tooth, forward on one side, and the oppositeone backward on the other side, by changing the bolts'4 which passthrough'the fore end of the tooth and the bar E', so that the lower endsof the planting-tubes will range obliquely across the machine, at theangle required, so as tol drop the corn a `desired across the eld or lotbeing planted. A

It will be most convenient for the driver to sit on the seat H3,fastened to the levers H1, when operating the machine, so that hisweight will press the furrowing-teeth into the ground, and4 get o'readily when turning the machine. But if twopersons operate-themachine,V one can sit on one seat,and the other on the other seatwithout inconvenience.

Having described my improvements in planting-ma-` chines,

YWhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. Incombination with the drivers or planteis seat, supported by thefurrowing-teeth, the spring I, intel-f posed between the seat and thefurrowing-teeth, sub'- stantially as described, for the purpose setforth.

2. In combination with the arrangement covered by the rst claim, hangingthe axle of the centre carrying-wheel I),4 so that the wheel can vibratevertically,

and adapt itself to uneven ground, substantially as del i XVitnesses:

JOSEPH F. WILCOX, Jem: S. UNDERWOOD.

